One hundred and twenty-seven young men and women passed out of training school as full-fledged members of the Fiji Police Force, according to an article published by The Fiji Times on June 4, 1976.
There was a 20-week basic training period at the police school at Nasova, Nasese in Suva, where they hardly knew how to stand up straight when they first joined, according to their commander.
They became well-trained and well-disciplined constables, ready to handle anything they came across.
There were lectures from senior police officers such as the public relations officer and the crime and accident prevention officers. Outside organisations also gave their services to train the country’s police force.
Harry Charman, of the Charman’s All Races Club, taught them self-defence, the St John’s Ambulance Brigade ran a first aid course and lectures were given by the Suva Fire Brigade, the pathological section of the CWM Hospital, the Lands and Survey Department, the Social Welfare Department and the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The recruits who passed out on that day were the biggest intake in the history of the school.
Of the 127 new constables, 14 were women constables and two constables from the Tuvalu Constabulary.
The Commandant, Superintendent Ambika Prasad, explained that it had been possible because the number of people who had applied to join the force allowed him to enlist a higher standard of recruits.
The recruits all had a minimum education of up to Form 4, many had passed Fiji Junior, 35 had passed a number of subjects of the New Zealand School Certificate examination and one had passed the GCE examination.
SP Prasad said there was also a need to reduce the training period from 24 weeks to 20 weeks by enlisting people with a minimum of a Fiji Junior pass.
He said the higher standards meant the recruits had a better understanding academically and so were better equipped to understand instructions, both in the classroom and in the field.
The number of new recruits would only be 127, but the appeal that a career in the Police Force had for young people in Fiji was seen by the fact that 1300 boys and girls throughout the country applied.
“I interviewed 1298 people for the August intake, more than the present strength of the entire force,” SP Prasad said.
He said many of the people he interviewed told him they wanted to join the force because of the security it offered, the chances of advancement and an attractive salary.
The recruits lived together throughout the training period, the girls in one barracks and the boys in another at Nasova. Recruits from Suva lived in Nasova as well.
SP Prasad said the training period was divided into three parts.
During the first part, the recruits were taught general subjects to broaden their knowledge, plus some law.
In the next stage, they were taught law and the practice of law which contributed to their day-to-day work as constables.
At the last stage, the recruits spent their time doing practical work of what they had already been taught. During this period, they spent some time doing duties at police stations and on patrols.
There were weekly tests on Fridays throughout the training and final exams, both practical and written.
The females received exactly the same training as the males, except weapons training. The males learned how to handle a rifle while the females learned how to use a pistol.
The typical day of the trainees was from 5.30am to 8pm. They were up at 5.30am, and in uniform and on the parade ground by 6.15am. Then there was an hour’s drill before breakfast, then into the classroom at 8.30am until 12.30pm.
The trainees were free until 2pm and afternoons were more often spent outside than in the classroom.
There was self-defence and life-saving instructions, physical courses, confidence courses, road running and games in the gym.
Dinner was from 5pm to 6.30pm before another hour of study or an educational film.
The commandant was an “old boy” of the school himself.
He said that after the passing out parade, the recruits were seen crying as they said goodbye to each other before being sent to their various stations.
“When they arrive, they are lonely, but when they leave, they are all one family.”
